Studio Visit with Derek Weisberg

The representation of sculpture in the new contemporary art movement is one in which there is a pressing and immediate void to fill. Though there are a plethora of painters, toy makers, street artists and photographers, the act of sculpting with one’s bare hands is slowly becoming a dying and, god forbid, a soon to be lost form of art. To compound the matter even further, for what little sculpture does exist out there in this niche world of ours, therein also lies yet another void, that of the humanist aspect. Much as there may just be too many “big-eyed girl” paintings or too many “Banksy-esque” street art knock-offs, the world of new contemporary sculpture seems oftentimes too wrapped up in the cerebral, disconnected from its fundamental and base human emotions. Enter Derek Weisberg.

Weisberg’s work is (as odd as this is to say) a bit uncomfortable to take in. The artist’s exploration into the humanity of pain and suffering is so apparent in his subject’s eyes, upturned to the sky, in the mouths, agape in a silent scream, that one could almost cut through the prevalent tension in the air with knife, or better yet, a ceramic scalpel.

Hi-Fructose took a trip to the young artist’s studio to preview his upcoming show at the new contemporary art forerunner, Anno Domini Gallery, in San Jose. “Auroral Dreaming” opens Friday, February 4th.